Feeding Your new Kitten
All of my cats and the dog, eat a natural diet of raw food. It is a known fact that cats are obligate carnivores. My kittens/cats are raised on a raw diet of meat, bone and organs only, with added vitamins, salmon oil, and minerals. I want my kittens to continue to be fed in this manner. There are many Health food stores for cats and dogs all over the country now, where you can buy frozen raw diets for the cats, without much work on your part. It is becoming recognized as the proper way of feeding a carnivore.
Feeding this way will insure that the kitten will remain in good health. I feel that artificial feeding with commercial dry food is contributing to many diseases in our feline friends.
A CARNIVORE does not have the enzymes in the mouth or the stomach to digest complex carbohydrates or carbohydrates. Plant matter takes much longer to digest than animal protein. A carnivore's digestive system is equipped to digest animal proteins which break down quickly. Plant, grain, and vegetable matter, which is carbohydrate, takes much longer to be broken down and processed and when the indivdual is NOT equiped to handle that sort of food (which a CARNIVORE is not, because they lack the enzymes needed to process carbohydrates) the process will take even LONGER. Do not buy into what commercial food companies tell you. These companies know VERY little about the nutritional needs of a CARNIVORE. If they did, they would NOT include substances like grains in their foods. Dry food was created as a human convenience.
FACT...CARNIVORES DO NOT HAVE THE ENZYMES TO DIGEST CARBOHYDRATES.... WE DO, this is why we have longer intestines...our intestines are 5 times the length of a cat or dogs because we need it to digest and process carbohydrates...we also have enzymes in our mouths(the saliva) that breaks down vegetable and plant matter (so do cows), carnivores lack this. This is BASIC science and the difference between a Carnivore (cats and dogs), Omnivore(us) and a Herbivore(cow). Cats that live only by eating birds and mice live to a nice old age with no dental problems, diabetes, liver disorder, kidney diseases, or irritable bowel disease. Diabetes has become epidemic in cats.
"Feline diabetes is not the natural fate of hundreds of thousands of pet cats world-wide. It is, rather, a human-created disease that is reaching epidemic proportions because of the highly artificial foods that we have been feeding our feline companions for the past few decades. Without the constant feeding of highly processed, high carbohydrate dry foods, better suited to cattle than cats, adult-onset feline diabetes would be a rare disease, if it occured at all." - Elizabeth Hodgkins DVM, JD
To read more.>>>>>*Your Diabetic Cat*.
We must keep in mind that the pet food representatives are the ones that 'educate' Veterinarians on pet nutrition. It is a constant challenge for them to sell more food than another company. How many of us really do all the research into the food that we feed our cats.
Now there are so many choices! Kitten food, Adult food, Diet food, Kidney food, Urinary Tract food, Dental Formula, Special diets for Irritable Bowel disease and Diabetes, but why? The cats years ago didn't need all these special diets, because the one natural diet worked for all of them.
In the wild, cats are killers and hunters. They eat their food raw. They first kill off all sick animals, and how do they survive from diseases? With their own enzymes, they can dissolve the bad bacteria. A healthy natural diet is contributing to a healthy nervous system and immune system of the cat. It takes 12 hours for a cat to digest dry food, and it can never get enough water, not matter how much they drink. It only takes 2 hours for a cat to digest raw meat and bone, and it is about 80% moisture. Cats get the needed amount of moisture for their body, and their kidneys.
Corn and wheat gluten, and other carbohydrates added to commercial pet food, are the leading causes of diabetes. Feeding a dry food diet is removing the natural system of defense & balance from cats and replacing it with artificial measures.

1. Why feed my kitten raw meat?

Cats are obligate carnivores. This means cats must eat meat in order to maintain good health. Commercial dry cat food is not meat—at least 25% of it is cereal based, and with some brands it is even higher. Because cats are obligate carnivores they do not need a significant amount of carbohydrates in their diet. In fact cats require less than 5% carbohydrates. Dry food is often as high as 40%(or higher) in carbohydrates. Carbohydrates contribute to obesity, diabetes, periodontal disease and digestive problems in cats. A food high in carbs will not provide proper nutrition for a cat. Raw meat does not contain any significant carbs. It is closest to what a cat would naturally eat.

2. Is raw meat dangerous?

· Raw meat is not dangerous to cats. Cats were meant to eat raw meat—they were designed to. A cat's stomach is very acidic and their intestine is very short. This enables their food to be digested and passed through it's body very quickly. Because of this the cat does not become ill from eating raw meat as most bacteria are destroyed by the high stomach acids and what little is there, does not have a chance to grow and cause a problem since the food passes through the body very quickly. If you are very worried, a few drops of Grapefruit Seed Extract can be added to the water content in the raw food. Always make sure you clean up after feeding your cat however because the bacteria may be a problem for you.
3. Can I feed my cat bones?
· Cats can eat bones as long as they are not cooked. Chicken bones, smaller turkey bones and small riblet bones are OK to feed cats. They will not be able to eat bigger bones, but chewing on them is good for their teeth. Never feed cooked bones.
It is a myth that dry food is good for a cat's teeth. If you ever see food that a cat has vomited, you will see that most of the pieces are still whole. The fact is that muscle meat is the best thing to keep teeth and gums in good condition.


For excellent information on raising your cats naturally, click on the link below.

www.blakkatz.com

You can also purchase the book "Raising Cats Naturally" by Michelle Bernard on her site.

These sites below contain valuable information worth reading.
Catinfo.org

More valuable information these sites: Raw Food makers in Canada: 

http://www.intherawpetfood.com/companies.html

http://www.arushapetfoods.com/catfood.htm

http://www.urbancarnivore.com/